Expectations

We all know people hold expectations when regarding other people. Our society has expectations of each of us. They all expect us to go to school, graduate, go to college and get a job. They expect us to fit in the mold set by predecessors before us. Well here are a few things you should know about people who society deems “failures” or even “most likely to wind up in jail”, “most likely to live at home until they are 45 years old” and blah blah blah. Well you know what? Some of the most famous scientists and inventors  were DROP OUTS.

For example:

Thomas Edison, he had only three MONTHS of formal education, yet he invented the light bulb, phonograph and motion picture camera.

Benjamin Franklin, he dropped out of school at age TEN and went to work for his father as a printer! Yet he was a  politician, diplomat, author, printer, publisher, scientist, inventor, founding father, and coauthor and cosigner of the Declaration of Independence.

Those are just a couple of people that were drop outs, that have done MORE than half of the people with a piece of paper saying that they graduated. But schooling isn’t the only expectation that people have. Some expectations are more based on what gender you are, especially for some people out there.

For instance, I was expected by people to be able to sew, clean and cook. Now, I know I can cook, and cook well; but I also love cooking. But cleaning? Sewing? I’d rather be out building something, or hunting, not stuck inside doing “women’s work” .  Sometimes people also have UNREALISTIC expectations, like expecting someone like me to be able to sit still in a classroom and not need to move around. I’m pretty sure with some testing someone would want to stick me on some meds or something like that for some not-really-there-ADD/ADHD thing for me…

There is nothing wrong with me, I just don’t learn in the general manner that everyone thinks everyone else should be able to learn in. I’m a hands on learner, I don’t learn well from books, even though I love to read. People seem to think I love to read therefore I love school, in fact I HATE school. But that’s another post altogether.

Back to expectations, what do expectations do for us? They can cause us disappointment, hurt, and can even push people away. Especially when you expect someone to follow their word, when they don’t. People have expected me to be just a good quiet girl; sometimes I feel like they have the “seen but not heard” type of girl in mind. But sorry to disappoint those people, I want my voice HEARD, I don’t like letting my opinion go to waste.

I don’t do “sittin’ pretty”; now I agree with people saying “women shouldn’t <fill in choice thing here>” but I don’t agree with “women CAN’T <fill in blank>”  We CAN do almost everything a man can, but whether we SHOULD is the question. So for those expecting us girls/women to do “women’s work”  you may be a bit disappointed, yeah, some women do like that type of stuff, others don’t. But some men like “women’s work” while some don’t.

Another thing I would like to mention in this one is the expectation of color PREFERENCES. The current society says it’s OK for girls to like a “boys” color, but it’s not OK for boys to like a “girls” color. I wasn't the cookie cutter little girl at all. I didn't like dolls, or Barbies; I liked toy cars, the toy tool bench instead of a toy kitchen. While some boys may like the dolls and the kitchen instead. That doesn't make them “gay” or “homosexual” if you really wanna be politically correct. I don’t agree with homosexuality, but I don’t see them as any less human.

So who cares if a boy likes pink, or a girl likes blue. It doesn't matter in the long run what their favorite color is.

Anyway, there goes my bunny trail… now that that is over with, back to expectations.

The society today says we should do this, or we should do that. Not even because it’s popular or whatever, but because it is what is expected of us. People expect girls to wear clothes that show WAY too much; just because they are girls. Unless of course you were raised in a strict “church family” then they expect you to dress covered from your ankles to your necks. There is rarely a median.

We need to stop “expecting” people to do something based on our PERSONAL preferences. People aren't going to drop everything they see as “right” because YOU don’t agree. Why judge someone? On something you don’t agree with PERSONALLY?

Signed,

Anonymous